Disappearance Act
by RaiLei
Summary: In which Selphie sees Sora come back to the Island, leave, and come back with Aqua and Riku. [KH3]


Selphie sighed, pushing her bangs out of her eyes.

She hadn't been to the Island for years; after she turned thirteen, it just . . . wasn't a priority.

Boys . . . Jobs . . . Homework . . . College Applications . . . real life was just around the corner.

There just wasn't time to run off to the beach with her skipping rope.

But, she hadn't prioritized right – it was only high school, she had all the time in the world – and when it came time for College Applications, her grade point average wasn't stellar for scholarships and the tuition was a bit higher than what she had saved up.

Which was how she found herself sitting at the reception desk of the Destiny Times Newspaper, _this _close to her dream job of Journalist, watching her friends social media posts about their College lives.

Tidus and Wakka had gone off to College on a Sports Scholarship – their sights set on being the next big Blitzball star.

Riku had returned to the Island with Sora – how had she forgotten the brunette? – and upon graduation, the two of them had up and left again in the middle of the night, this time taking Kairi with them.

It was the night of the meteor shower.

With all her friends gone off to College, she had a lot more time on her hands to think, and had come to one conclusion.

When the stars fell, her friends disappeared.

But, she couldn't prove it.

Which was why she decided to come out to the smaller of the Destiny Islands – it was a quiet place to think as the younger kids seemed uninterested in sailing to a deserted Island off the coast to escape their parents' watchful eyes.

If she wanted to be a journalist, she needed a scoop to impress them.

However, on a small Island where everyone knows everyone, a scoop no one had heard whispers of was next to impossible.

"Maybe I need to look at it from a new angle," Selphie mumbled to herself, staring out at the endless ocean.

Sighing, she kicked off her sandals before lying down on the dock, closing her eyes. "Maybe I need to move to the city too," she said, closing her eyes as the sun beat down on her. "How Tidus and Wakka survive without me is a mystery," she laughed lightly, throwing her arm over her eyes.

_Splash!_

Selphie raised an eyebrow as she heard the splash, followed by a voice she didn't recognize.

Wasn't she alone? There weren't any other boats on the dock . . .

"A Keyblade? It looks so old. How did it end up here?"

Selphie paused, she _knew_ that voice. "Is that Sora?" Moving to prop herself up on her arm, she did a double-take, rubbing her eyes with her spare hand. "But . . . who are _they_?"

She watched as Sora conversed with the . . . duck and dog . . . as they glanced at some gigantic key in Sora's hand.

She cursed the wind as it changed direction, no longer carrying their voices in her direction. "What is going on?"

Where were Riku and Kairi? Why had he returned to the Island without them?

Her eyes widened as a _light_ shot out of the key in Sora's hand, lighting up the old _"Secret Spot" _where everyone drew pictures on the wall. She had seen the sketch of Sora and Kairi ages ago; her and Garnet had a bet going to see who would make the first move.

"Wait . . . is that a door?" She watched as Sora gestured to his companions before the three turned, heading towards the door. "What is going on here?" Selphie mumbled, scooping up her sandals before heading down the dock, keeping her eyes on the trio.

But before she could round the corner and confront the trio, Sora touched the door, the light emanating from it momentarily blinding her.

And then, when the light dimmed and Selphie had rubbed the stars from her eyes . . . Sora was gone, leaving the duck and dog behind.

"Wait, what?" Selphie mumbled, shaking her head. "Sora . . . just . . . vanished?" The scene before her made no sense; Sora couldn't just _vanish_.

Not understanding the scene before her, she took a couple steps back, out of sight of the Secret Place. Selphie closed her eyes, taking a couple deep breaths as she pressed her back up against the tree. She needed to clear her mind – was this the scoop she was looking for?

The Secret Place . . . it was _more _than it seemed.

Did it have something to do with the trio's constant disappearance?

It was a far-fetched story, one she was going to have a hard time pitching back at the Newspaper.

Opening her eyes, Selphie glanced at Sora's companions – why was he travelling with talking animals? – who hadn't seemed to notice her presence, too concerned with Sora's disappearance. Pushing herself away from the tree, Selphie reached back, double-checking that her cell phone hadn't fallen from her pocket, as she turned on her heel.

_I need a better vantage point_, she thought idly as she glanced at the wooden platform overhead.

This could be the story to set up her career – everyone wondered how the trio disappeared constantly. They used to joke that it was magic that spirited them away, which their parents would scold them as they weren't taking the disappearance seriously.

Selphie had just reached the top of the ladder, climbing onto the wooden platform when it happened again. From the direction of the Secret Place, the same blinding light appeared.

"Again?" she mumbled, rubbing the stars from her eyes while she fumbled to get her cell phone from her pocket, opening the camera app with one swipe. "Can't miss my scoop," she mumbled, sprinting across the platform to the ledge overlooking the path to the Secret Place.

Was Sora back?

This was her _one_ chance to prove that something supernatural was going on.

"Aqua!"

Selphie jumped, almost losing her grip on her phone. Had she been discovered? "You caught me, but, it's not what – wait . . . is that Riku?"

Placing her phone beside her, Selphie raised a hand to shield her eyes from the sun glinting off the ocean. She shook her head, was this . . . what was happening?

Sora walked into the Secret Place _alone_ . . . only to return with Riku.

"But . . . where's Kairi?" she mumbled, looking around for the red-head. "And who is that?"

There was a blue-haired woman sitting in the sand before them. Selphie couldn't help but raise an eyebrow; she'd never seen anyone on the Island who looked like that. Keeping her eyes on the small group as Sora and Riku spoke to the woman, she reached for her cell phone – she needed evidence.

"There's _something_ supernatural going on here," she said, turning her flash off before taking a photo. "What _**is **_the Secret Place, really?"

Maybe that was her angle – not the disappearance of the trio, the unusual companions . . . but that the Island was connected to something _more_.

But, she knew no one would really believe her theory.


End file.
